Director: Gregory Lamberson
Year: 2026
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Werewolf
Plot:
Heading out into the woods, a group of friends decides to host a get-together at a remote cabin in the area to reminisce and catch up, but when a stranger arrives at the cabin with claims that the woods are filled with werewolves must band together to fight off the creatures to get away.
Review:
For the most part, this was a really likable indie werewolf film. One of the better features of this one comes from the strong central setup that takes a time-worn genre convention and allows it to be utilized effectively whenever it comes up. The cliche of a group of friends heading out to a cabin in the woods and finding something evil along the way that they have to deal with the longer they stay there is a fun way to get this going, as it provides this with the kind of setup that gives all the requirements for the genre to come together. The group coming together and looking to get past their issues as they stay there, while trying to catch up, makes everything here focus on getting to know the group, as the different issues and personal problems that come up move this along into the type of setup where the arrival of the hunter and subsequent werewolf attacks are useful at breaking up the festivities taking place. Giving some solid context for the strange events taking place in the woods and what they’re up against, the series of revelations that come about due to his presence at the cabin help ground the premise into a worthwhile story.
As this goes into the growing realization that these stories are true, the action here comes off immensely well as a means of showing the ferocity and savagery inherent in the creatures. The opening attack on the couple hiking through the woods gets this off to a strong start, focusing on the trapped victim stuck in the bear-trap while his partner gets slaughtered off to the side for a fantastic opening sequence, much like the second attack against the hunting party that sets up the second storyline about the survivor coming to the cabin to save them. That sets into motion the series of attacks against the cabin where the creatures attack in continuous waves, and the barricade-style storyline makes everything feel quite chilling when they’re trapped inside and forced to rely on smarts and weaponry to save themselves, as it plays with werewolf lore in fun ways to have some impressive elements about it. Combined with the practical gore and wholly impressive werewolf design, these all bring together a lot to like.
There are a few minor issues that keep this one down. The biggest drawback with the film is the constant sense of moronic tactics to try to force the drama about not believing what’s going on, as this makes it plainly clear what’s happening, yet it remains quite clearly focused on trying to generate drama where it doesn’t need it. The group has just witnessed their friends getting ripped apart when they try to escape, and there have been multiple stories or observations of howling in the woods to make the claims quite believable, yet there’s far too much time spent afterward trying to argue over whether the creatures were werewolves and whether his claims are normal. This type of behavior feels designed simply to keep their combative characters intact during these scenes instead, and continues on when the werewolves finally make it inside the cabin, since all they do is just simply stand there waiting for the werewolves to take one of their friends out before getting involved personally. These parts are quite obnoxious and keep this feeling quite off, and when combined with some obvious low-budget limitations throughout here, they all manage to bring this one down.
Overview: ****/5
An immensely likable indie werewolf effort, there’s a lot to like here with this one being far more fun than expected, and it keeps this one up against a few small flaws that show up here. Those with an appreciation for this type of genre fare, who are hardcore werewolf fanatics, or who are curious about it, will have the most to like, while most others out there should heed caution.
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